Foundation of the Chapel 1501 (≈ 1501)
Chapel dedicated to Notre-Dame and Saint Claude.
1826
Construction of the current castle
Construction of the current castle 1826 (≈ 1826)
The work of architect Leblond.
1830-1840
Development of the landscaped garden
Development of the landscaped garden 1830-1840 (≈ 1835)
Directed by J. Chevalier.
1870
Destruction of the chapel
Destruction of the chapel 1870 (≈ 1870)
Disappeared from the religious building.
11 juin 1980
Registration for Historic Monuments
Registration for Historic Monuments 11 juin 1980 (≈ 1980)
Protection of facades and interiors.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Façades and roofs of the castle and communes as well as those of the two corner turrets of the vegetable garden; totally leaks; next rooms on the ground floor with their decor: the large living room and dining room with their woodwork, the old billiard room and the two bedrooms with their gypserie decor on the first floor, the library fireplace on the ground floor (cad. A 176, 182, 183, 185): entry by order of 11 June 1980
Key figures
Famille d'Orvaux - Former owner (early 16th century)
Founded the chapel in 1501.
Leblond - Architect of the castle (1826)
Designs the current building.
J. Chevalier - Landscaper (1830-1840)
Set up the landscape garden.
Origin and history
Danne Castle, located in Saint-Martin-du-Bois in the department of Maine-et-Loire, is a 19th-century building built in 1826 by architect Leblond. It replaces an old manor house shaved in the 17th century, of which only the leak remains, dated the 16th century. The estate then belonged to the Orvaux family, who founded a chapel there in 1501. The present castle, of sober style, rises on a basement housing the commons, with a housing body covered with a rump roof.
The commons and agricultural parts, built of shale and tuftstone, date from the 2nd quarter of the 19th century (circa 1840) and from the 3rd quarter (circa 1860-1870). The landscape garden, created in the years 1830-1840 by J. Chevalier, is organized around lawns, groves and massive trees. To the east, a large enclosed vegetable garden, flanked by turrets, completes the whole. The castle and its outbuildings have been listed as historical monuments since 1980.
The building retains notable decorative elements, such as the woodwork of the large living room and dining room, or the gypseries of the first floor bedrooms. The original chapel, dedicated to Notre-Dame and Saint Claude, was destroyed in 1870. The estate illustrates the architectural and landscape evolution of seigneurial properties in Anjou, from a medieval mansion to a 19th-century bourgeois residence.
